Hell Is For Children
by My-own-tears
Summary: Ten years after her disappearance, Zechs is ready to accept that his younger sister is dead to the world and not coming back. But when Heero and Relena Yuy's children come back to him through a twist of fate, he must deal with three children and a man who
1. Prelude to Trouble

Gundam Wing, the awesome TV show,  
Is not mine! That is something you should know.  
I am broke, so please not sue.  
You'd get some pocket lint, pens  
And an old game board too.  
To distain means to refrain  
from calling one's own  
And the phrase 'to claim'  
Is the opposite of 'distain'.  
This pathetic poem I just wasted two minutes writing,  
But it got the point across, so don't bother fighting!  
~Little Dylan  
  
Hell Is For Children   
Chapter 1  
By Little Dylan  
  
Zechs Marquise, loving husband, father and the second-highest ranking Preventer, glared down at the paper on his desk with more than faint distaste. It was the hardest thing to do, in all the fourteen years since he had been reunited with his baby sister. Simply the hardest thing.  
Lucrezia had been supportive, encouraging him to do what he thought was the right thing. After all, she had grieved and suffered too in the ten years since Relena had simply disappeared one night, with no warning or indications. One minute she was there, and the next...gone. As if she were spirited away.  
Heero Yuy had disappeared that same night.  
Zechs, at the time, was quite aware of the young Gundam pilot's love for his sister. And he had accepted. For the most part.  
When she had disappeared, he hadn't been worried. She had been especially upset that week for some reason and he figured Heero had simply 'stolen' her for a day or two, an opportunity for her to relax and get her act together. But when days crawled into weeks and weeks into months, with no contact from her, he reported the inevitable. His sister, Relena. Missing.  
As months turned into years his hope faded, faded so much until now it came to this. To this damn paper sitting on his desk.  
Zechs closed his eyes and the once again opened them, and in one swift pen stroke signed the paper that would declare Relena Dorlain legally dead. After ten years, he simply couldn't hold on anymore.  
He placed down the pen and sat back in his chair. Ten years of heartache, of false hope, and joy through tears with the birth of his twin children nine years ago. And now, it was all over.  
"Goodbye, my dear baby sister."  
  
TBC 


	2. Prelude to Truth

Hell Is For Children  
~Little Dylan   
Chapter 1  
  
Her breaths came in short gasping sobs as she ran down the allyway, her red-rimmed eyes filled with tears and her cheeks stinging from the cold air. Snow drifted slowly down from the gray sky only to puddle into ice water on the narrowed streets of Sapporo, adding to the day's dreariness.  
Her socks were shredded to bits, her pink coat that matched her galoshes gone, blood dribbling down from the slashes in her wrists and pooling in her small tightly-clenched fists. Her thighs were slightly cold from the breeze that the slashes in her pleated black skirt revealed, and her yellow shirt was stained in dark red blood, her sleeves drenched in the dark liquid. Her eyesight began to get fuzzy as sobs wracked her small frame, ripping themselves from her chest and falling on deaf ears. She cried out weakly as she collapsed to the ground, her head pounding and feeling her own blood pool under her.   
Voices were near her now, speaking in rapid northern dialect, not the Tokyo accent she was so used to. Something about an ambulance, her parents...?  
Her parents were dead.  
The last thing she remembered were the hands reaching for her, calling out to her, and she clamped her small blood-stained hands over her small ears. As confusion settled in a hazy fog over her mind, she started to scream, screaming and sobbing for anyone who would help her.  
Tasukete! Onegai! Dareka, tasukete kure!  
And the hands that were supposed to hit her...gently lifted her from the ground...  
That was when everything went black.  
  
  
"Zechs!"  
He visibly jolted in his seat as the door to his office in the Preventers building swung open and his wife hurried in, dressed in casual clothes and looking a bit nervous. He almost immediatly stood as she closed the door behind her  
"Lucrezia?"   
"No, no, don't stand. Sit down." She said, making small gestures with her hand. He blinked.  
"Arianna and Dominic?"   
"At home, sit down!" She cried out softly, and he sat down with her still pacing around the room. She paced a few more times before turning to face him, an unreadable expression on her face.   
"Do you remember...a few days ago when that little girl was found wandering around Hokkaido...? Her father was found dead in Tokyo?"  
He nodded slowly.  
"Yeah...covered in blood, scared and alone, and not remembering anything about how she got there."  
"That's her...well, she was taken to a hospital near Sapporo and her medical records were extracted."  
"And?"  
Lucrezia sighed, wondering how she could put this in mild terms.  
"The girl's name is Akihiko Yui, and her mother died in childbirth. And since the girl's father was killed, they contacted the next of kin, her only living blood relatives listed on the form." She took a deep breath before continuing. "It was us, Zechs. They contacted us. We're listed as blood relatives on her forms."  
  
"Really, when you look at it, Japan's not all that different from the rest of the world like we thought, huh." Zechs inquired as he stepped off the shuttle into Narita Airport.  
"Be that as it may, it's as simple as us going in there, checking out the claim, confirming it's false, and be home in time for dinner." Lucrezia snapped, her eyes scanning the airport for the woman who was supposed to act as their aide. Zechs tossed a concerned look at his wife.  
"Lu..you okay?"  
She sighed dejectedly.  
"Fine...I just haven't been feeling all together lately, and I'm starting to get sick again. And now, with this..." She sighed, her eyes downcast. "I'm sorry if I've come off a little short these past few days..."  
A small grin crossed his features as he wrapped an arm around his wife's waist and pulled her closer, tilting her chin up to meet her eyes.  
"It's okay, love...don't we all at some point or another?" he whispered, his face inching closer and closer to hers...  
"Um...excuse me?" A soft voice interrupted them. Zechs and Noin both jerked apart and came face to face with a young red-haired woman with soft blue eyes.  
"Mr. Peacecraft?"  
"Yes?" Zechs answered the woman, stepping forward. She bowed in response.  
"I am Haruka Tomoe. I was sent by the Niji Hokoru hospital to be your aide for this trip..."  
"Yes, Ms. Tomoe. And how will we be getting to the hospital from here?"  
"If you'll come right this way, we have a car waiting..."  
  
"If that is the case, Mr. Takada, there must be a mistake in the girl's medical forms." Noin insisted as she sat across from the middle-aged Japanese man at the desk.  
"Mrs. Peacecraft, I assure you, the records were checked and confirmed by the childrens' father just six months ago. All information listed on the legal forms are correct." He said, speaking with a slight accent. Lucrezia sighed and closed her eyes, then opened them and dried another approach.  
"Mr. Takada, you realize that I have not heard of nor have had any contact with these children, and neither has my husband?"  
"We realize, Mrs. Peacecraft."  
Lucrezia sighed and stared down at the three forms before her.  
"Ryosuke, Kotaro and Akihiko Yui. We're listed as direct relatives on ALL of these children's forms?"  
"Yes."  
A moment of silence passed between the two before she spoke again.  
"Am I permitted to look at the forms?"  
"Of course, Mrs. Peacecraft."  
She cautiously opened the first manila folder, leafing through school transcripts, medical information and random others until she found the general information sheet and it's translation sheet. She picked it up and briefly read it through.  
"Nothing out of the ordinary, really...Name, Ryosuke Yui, date of birth, blood type, ecetera..." She whispered to herself. She coninued to skim until she found the part she was looking for.  
"Biological parents, current conditions as listed...Oh my God!" She cried as she jumped up from her chair, her heart pounding in her ears.  
"Mrs. Peacecraft?"  
"M-Mr. Takada...this, this is impossible...!"  
"Mrs. Peacecraft? Are you okay?"  
"No, this can't be right, this..."  
"I assure you, all information was confirmed by their father six months ago."  
The manila folder fell suddenly from her trembling hands as she backed to the doorway.  
"P-please excuse me, I have to find my husband..."  
"Do as you must, Mrs. Peacecraft." Mr. Takada nodded, a bit confused as the woman quickly ran out the door.  
  
So, he's the oldest son. Zechs thought as he watched through the thick glass window that separated him from Aki's room. The young four year old girl was sitting in bed in a steril white hospital gown, thick gauze wrapped around her wrists and an IV in her hand . Her face was pale, accented by her dark blue eyes and her dark hair fell in dark strands to her midback. A young boy, looking about 10 was in bed next to her, an arm around her as he read from a Japanese storybook.   
"That's her." Haruka said softly. "The boy next to her is Ryosuke Yui, the oldest son. The second oldest is Kotaro. They both speak English and some European languages that their mother taught them...Kotaro, he should be around here someplace...Shall I find him for you?"  
"Please." Zechs' voice was strangely monotonous as he continued to stare at the young girl and her brother. "There are some questions I would like to ask the two boys, if it isn't too much trouble."  
"Of course, Mr. Peacecraft." And with that, Haruka swiftly walked down the hall, leaving Zechs alone to watch the children.  
Looking at Ryosuke, his wild dark hair and eyes and the girl beside him, it was a dead giveaway on who the father was. Hell, Ryosuke looked exactly like him.  
"Ryosuke, Kotaro and Aki." Zechs whispered softly. "Heero...no, my sister's children..."  
  
TBC 


	3. The Truth?

Note: ~ ~ are flashbacks and all dialouge spoken by Aki, Kotaro and Ryosuke are in Japanese. I didn't think you'd really want me to write in Japanese, so... Oh yeah, I don't own Gundam Wing. If I did, needless to say, my college fund worries would be over. Oh, the song "Day that I die" belongs to Good Charlotte, the rock band.   
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One day I woke up, I woke up knowin'   
Today is the day that I die  
  
"Hilde! Hey, love! Hilde!" Duo Maxwell called as he entered his house, wiping his forehead with his shirt he had taken off long ago, revealing his well-muscled chest.  
"In the kitchen!" His wife called back. "And make sure you wipe your feet before you come in!"  
Duo gulped and looked back at his dirty footprints from the door to the middle of the hall, where he was standing.  
"Um..oops?" He said quietly, and kicked his shoes off before proceeding into the kitchen. He saw Hilde opening the refrigerator, dressed as usual in a tank top and shorts. She pulled out a beer, handing it to him before walking back to the table, where her accountbooks were spread across the surface. In a high chair next to him sat his two-year-old son, Zack.  
"Where's Junior, babe?" Duo asked, pulling off the top to the beer.  
"Mm...at Matt's house, swimming. I let him go over for a little while."  
"Oh..." Duo said, vaguely remembering something that his son mentioned at breakfast this morning about a pool.  
"I drink!" Called out the small voice from the high chair, and Duo grinned, setting down his beer and lifting his son out of his high chair. With his dark bluish-black hair and violet eyes, Zack was becoming quite a good-looking kid even at two. People were always stopping him on the street, telling him what an adorable little boy and little baby he had.  
"Hey kiddo! You're a little too young to drink, but how about some apple juice?" Duo said, cradling his little boy in his arms and handing him his sippy cup. Zack scrunched up his button nose and stared up at his father.  
"No, grape!"  
Duo blinked and then sighed, rolling his eyes dramatically.  
"Forgive your father's mortal mistake, my son, I only hope you can live to correct your own ways, for I have permanently stained you..offering apple juice instead of the holy Grape-"  
"Cone on, Duo, you sound like Darth Vader talking to Luke!" Hilde spoke up, taking Zack from his arms and opening the refridgerator once again. "You wanted grape, sweetie?"  
Duo sighed. "Well, if I'm Darth Vader, then I demand a little more respect! Hell, I'm a Sith lord! No, even better! I'm Shinigami! I take orders from no one and I am all-powerful!" Duo cried, sticking out his chest illustratively. "And I shall-"  
His little rant was interrupted by the soft beeping of the vidphone and Hilde tossed him an amused look.  
"Go answer the phone, Darth."  
"Yes'm." Duo mumbled dejectedly, walking to the other end of the kitchen and activating the video screen, and then picking up the phone.  
"Funny Farm, how may I help you?"  
"Duo!" Hilde called from across the living room.  
"Good to see you still have a sense of humor, Maxwell."   
Duo grinned as the deep voice reached his ears.  
"Yo, Zechs! How've you been, man? How's the family?"  
"Do you always walk around the house with your shirt off? And they're fine, thanks."  
"No, not always, only when it's hot, even though it's the middle of December...So Zechs, what's up? You normally don't...call?" Duo's eyes lit with confusion as he saw the expression in his comrade's eyes.  
"Maxwell...I have something to tell you..."  
  
Cast off the buck an', went to the park and  
Enjoyed it one last time  
  
"Would you please just lay off that subject!?" Dark blue eyes flashed angirly as Ryosuke glared at Zechs from across the cafeteria table where they were sitting. Zechs held back a sigh.  
"Ryosuke-"  
"I don't understand what my mother has to do with any of this. I'm sick of everyone asking that. Just because my father was a former soldier, he would never do anything to my mom."  
"Ryosuke, I didn't-"  
"You implied."  
"..."  
"My dad loved my mom alot. He was very upset when she died."  
"I can understand that, Ryosuke. I love my wife very much as well. However, you know that your father was murdered in cold blood, because he was a soldier in the Eve Wars."  
Ryosuke's eyes darkened and his voice became strangely monotonous.   
"I know."  
"And we believe those same people may be after your brother and sister." Zechs said calmly. If this was, in fact, Heero's son then his temper was not something you wanted to affect. That is, if you valued your life. "Therefore, we have to know as much as possible about your family. And your mother DID give birth to you."  
Ryosuke was silent for a moment, and then reached over and took a sip of his cooling hot chocolate. He sat the cup down, and was silent for another moment before answering.  
"...Fine. I'll talk."  
Zechs smiled inwardly.  
"How old were you when your mom died, Ryosuke?"  
"Six."  
Zechs blinked at how fast the young boy answered. Obviously he wasn't comfortable talking about that. Either that or..  
"What were your mother's last words to you?"  
"..That she loved me."  
Aah. Hesitation.  
"Ryosuke, please don't lie."  
"...She said to take care of my brother and sister, and Dad. And she said she was sorry."   
"For what?"  
"I don't know."  
"Would she do anything to be sorry about?"  
"I don't see what this has to do with anything!" Ryosuke cried, his eyes narrowing. Zechs felt his heart wrench at the sight of the young boy. He was obviously upset.  
"Ryosuke..I know that it must have been so hard for you when your mom died, but you need to-"  
Ryosuke stood suddenly, his eyes flashing dangerously.  
"My mom didn't die!" Ryosuke said loudly, his fists tightly clenched at his sides. "My mom didn't just _die_! She was _murdered_!"  
  
Called my mother, told her I loved her  
And I begged her not to cry  
I wrote a letter, said I'd miss her  
And I signed that goodbye  
  
~  
Ryosuke was scared. More scared than he had ever been. He saw his father come out of his mother's room, his face blank and his eyes emotionless. He watched as his father crouched down to his height, staring into his dark blue eyes. Strong hands gripped his shoulders comfortingly, his lips spelling out the words that Ryosuke couldn't interpret. His mind was a blank. He didn't know what to think. He felt his whole body simply go cold, his eyes widening.  
He could see the sadness in his father's eyes, and he was pulled into an embrace as Heero hugged him reassuringly before standing.  
"Go play." He had said quietly. "I still have to tell your brother."  
  
Y'know the happiest day of my life  
The happiest day of my life  
Is the day that I die  
  
Ryosuke had walked into the hospital playroom, not feeling at all like he was walking. He was numb. His whole heart was cold, and his throat felt like a cold fist had enslaved it and was squeezing him. He saw his dad take Kotaro aside, his voice hushed. He watched as the three-year-old's eyes went from confusion to misunderstanding, to sadness. And then he heard his brother scream, tears flowing out of his eyes.  
"Why, papa!? Why!?"~  
  
Can you feel the cold tonight  
It sets in but it's all right  
Darkness falls, I'm letting go  
All alone, but I feel fine  
  
Lucrezia shifted a bit uncomfortably in the blue chair, not from the hard plastic but from the little girl's unrelenting cold stare. She gulped and then smiled lightly before leaning forward.  
"Hello, Aki. My name's Lucrezia, but you can call me Lucy. How are you feeling?"  
The smile slipped from her face as Aki continued to stare, her gaze boring into her eyes. She bit her lip, deciding to try another approach.  
"Aki, how old are you?"  
Silence. Lucrezia sighed. She should just give up and leave.  
"She doesn't understand you." A voice piped up from the back of the room. She turned and saw a little boy leaning against the frame in the doorway, his messy black hair falling in front of beautiful aqua blue eyes. Relena's eyes.  
"Who..?"  
The young boy pushed himself up from the doorway and walked past Lucrezia, and she saw Aki's face light up as he approached her.   
"Kotaro!" She cried, extending her bandaged arms. He leaned over and hugged her gently, careful not to disturb the bruises on her stomach. Kotaro pulled his little sister close, tilting his head towards her ear.  
"Henji shinai da." He whispered softly before pulling away and turning to Lucrezia.  
"Aki doesn't speak your language. She only knows Japanese."  
"I understand..And how do you know-"  
"My mom taught me." Kotaro cut her off quietly. "Dad..he stopped speaking it after mom died..So only 'niichan and I know it. We speak it to each other sometimes..but, never to Aki. It hurts too much.."  
  
We took a drive and   
We drove to DC, to see the places we lived  
Low conversation, we talked to old friends  
And all the things we did  
  
Kotaro slowly took a seat next to Ryosuke, slowly accepting the hot chocolate the blonde man was offering to him. Lucrezia had come with him, and now she lightly touched his shoulder and they stood and walked a short distance away, talking softly to one another. They occasionally cast glances back to the table, and Kotaro got a look on his face.  
"I don't like this." He mumbled, sitting on his hands to try and keep them from going everywhere.   
"Hn.."  
"Aww, you're no fun, 'niichan." Kotaro mumbled, reaching for his hot chocolate. The soft sound of sobbing stopped him, and he blinked. His gaze swept the room before he turned behind him and saw a young girl, about 5 years old, with short pink hair. She was curled into the corner of a booth, sobbing. Kotaro stood, sitting into the booth and sliding closer to her. She jumped when he placed a reassuring hand on her back, and suddenly she leaned into him, sobbing.  
"What's your name?" Kotaro whispered softly.  
"Kazuki.." the little girl mumbled between sobs.  
"Kazuki...why are you crying?"  
"Because my papa just died.." Kazuki sobbed, her grip on his shirt increasing. Kotaro's mind spun. His papa had died too. Shouldn't he be crying? Why were his eyes dry and his sister's and this little girl's were brimming with tears?  
Kotaro hugged Kazuki closer. But you're not crying now, and someone needs you, his own was reprimanding him.   
"Kazuki! Kazuki!" He heard a voice calling, and let go of his grip on the little girl as a young woman with dark hair came and picked up the little girl, slightly bowing in thanks to Kotaro. He noddd in response and then slid over the top of the booths, landing next to his brother. Ryosuke tossed him a look before taking another sip of his hot chocolate.  
"How's Aki?"  
"Fine."  
"Hn..."  
  
Summer nights, drunken fights  
Mistakes we made, and did we live it right?  
Y'know the happiest day of my life  
I swear, the happiest day of my life  
  
Kotaro bit his lip as suddenly tears that had been pushing against the back of his eyes rushed forward, obscuring his vision. He pushed back the choked sob that threatened to rip itself from his body, and with it his self-control. It just wasn't fair. First his mother, and now his father. He and his brother and sister were all alone now. And for what? Why did some children lose their parents and others, like him, had to be all alone? Why?!  
He felt an arm around his shoulder and squeezed his eyes shut as his brother pulled him closer.   
"Kotaro.."  
"It's not fair!" Kotaro cried, gripping Ryosuke's shirt. "It's just not fair! Why dad and mom?! WHY!? Aki still needs dad! I still need dad! And we all need mom! It's just not fair! Why our parents? Why not someone elses?!" At this he whipped his head up and glared tearfully at his older brother. Ryosuke stared at Kotaro for a minute, and Kotaro stared back. Finally his resolve fell and he collapsed against Ryosuke, tears streaming down his cheeks. "I know it's wrong to wish it was someone else..but...I want mom and dad back!" He whispered, his voice fading until it was only miserable sobs.   
  
Is the day that I die  
  
Ryosuke held onto his little brother, his anger boiling inside him. Whoever dared to mess with their family four years ago, and now, would pay with their lives. His eyes went cold. Yes, he would swear on the honor of his family's name that those who toyed with his life would pay with their own.  
"I'll make sure of it." He whispered softly as he hugged his little brother tighter, closing his eyes and letting Kotaro cry.  
Meanwhile, in room 612, Aki sat up in her bed and looked around the dark room. It was the middle of day, but the dark stormclouds outside obscured the sun from her room. The woman was gone, and so were the nurses. She turned her attention to all the wires on various places on her body, and then up to the silent monitor they were hooked on. She saw the jagged lines going up and down, around strategically placed numbers, slashbars and kanji she couldn't read. But above the kanji...She squinted her eyes. Ah! Hiragana. She could read hiragana.  
"Ke tsu atsu..Ketsu ry u." She slowly read. Blood pressure, and bloodstream. What was a blood pressure? She switched to the second set of characters. "Shi n pa ku ..." Heartbeat. She knew what that was. She switched to the third set of characters, which was only kanji. No hiragana. Oh well...she didn't feel like reading anyways. And she didn't want to go to sleep, because every time she closed her eyes..  
~  
"Run, Aki! Go!" She felt a violent shove on her back and fell just as the gun was fired. She felt blood hit her cheek and looked up, her eyes widening as she saw her father fall to the ground, blood flowing freely from his chest.  
"Papa!!"  
~  
Aki shook her head quickly, her cheeks hot and a lump forming in her throat. No, she wouldn't remember. She didn't want to remember. She cast a glance at the monitor and noticed that the lines under 'Shinpaku' were suddenly alot closer together and the spikes were alot higher. She watched them slow down, and looked outside just as she heard the soft patter of rain against the windowpane. She lowered her head, and then curled under the covers, crying softly into her pillow. She didn't want to be so alone. And she didn't want to remember anymore.  
  
Can you feel the cold tonight  
It sets in but it's alright  
Darkness falls, I'm letting go  
All alone, but I feel just fine...  
  
TBC 


	4. The Trouble

Ok, once again, all dialouge between the kids is in Japanese, and the twins in Chinese. I don't own GW, so get off my back. Oh, and the song is from Lunar, and is called "Wind's nocturne".   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  
Hell Is For Children  
Chapter 4  
Her Hell  
  
One week later, Lucrezia watched quietly as the nurse disconnected the heart monitors, pushing them to one side as she slowly removed the thick gauze from around Aki's wrists. Her stitches had been taken out, and now the wounds were starting to heal up nicely. Of course, the scars would never go away...Lucrezia's eyes darkened. When Aki grew up, there would still be those scars, three horizontal slashes on each wrist, with the intent to take away her life.  
All of a sudden, she hated the people who had done this to Aki. Not the cold, unsettled hate she had felt before. This was a dark rage that promised revenge for this family.  
"Aki-chan, korekara mo, kiotsukete kudasai wa ne?" The nurse said, smiling sweetly at the little girl. (Aki, from now on, please be careful, ok?)  
Aki nodded as the nurse wrapped a thinner band of gauze around her wrists, Ryosuke standing next to her. He turned to look at her.  
"All you need to do is get dressed and then we're going home." He said, smiling slightly.  
"Home?" Aki repeated softly, her eyes wide with hope. Ryosuke's face fell slightly and Kotaro bit his lip, suddenly very interested in his feet.  
"Yeah..we're going home."  
  
The next thing Lucrezia knew they were at Sapporo airport, ready to fly back to Tokyo to the Yui house to gather the children's belongings. She was holding Kotaro's hand, and keeping a close eye on Aki and Ryosuke who were reading. She locked eyes with another Preventer across the almost-empty waiting lobby and nodded. He nodded back and immediatly scurried out of sight. She blinked.   
All the kids are here, but where's my husband?  
She saw Zechs staring at the arrival and departure screens, occasionally asking Ryosuke to read for him. After a few minutes, however, he seemed to be doing fine on his own. Lucrezia left Kotaro with Ryosuke and Aki and walked over to him.  
"Zechs, what are you doing?"  
He didn't even turn his gaze from the screens.   
"Did you know the Hong Kong International airport flies here from the mainland?"  
"Mainland China? Yeah...so?"  
Suddenly a strange sound followed by a swishing noise was heard as a closed-up folding fan slid into the lobby. A few seconds passed as no one in the room spoke, and then out of nowhere a young girl - no older than five - ran into the room after it. Dark bangs fell in front of silk blue eyes and her long black hair was drawn up very cute-like in pigtails. She scooped up the fan and immediatly turned, doing so fast enough as to jump in the air as a young boy looking about the same age ran in behind her and tried to punch her. He also had bangs, but his eyes were dark grey and his hair was pulled into a low ponytail. The little girl landed and both took fighting stances, glaring at each other. Lucrezia gulped.  
"Why do I strangely recognize that style of fighting?"  
The boy and girl stood locked in a staring contest, glaring at each other, when suddenly an older girl looking around 9 appeared between them. She glared at each of them, her own jet black hair wisping from side to side as she turned her head towards each of them.  
"Leun! Mu Lan!"  
Both children reluctantly slid out of their stances and lowered their heads, mumbling something in Chinese.  
Looking slightly annoyed, the young girl grabbed Leun's hand and then picked Mu Lan up, balancing the little girl on her hip. She sat Leun in a seat, Mu Lan next to the seat Aki was in, and then sat herself between Mu Lan and Leun. Mu Lan huffed for a minute, but then looked over at Aki and smiled.  
"Konnichiwa!"  
"...Konnichiwa."  
Mu Lan leaned over the seat, speaking in perfect Japanese.  
"My name's Mu Lan. What's yours?"  
"Aki."  
"Hi Aki!"  
Aki smiled slightly. "Hi. So...what was that earlier?"  
Mu Lan looked a bit confused, before her eyes rolled slightly. "Oh...with my brother??"  
"Yes."  
"We were having an argument. He took my fan and threw it, so I kicked him and ran off to get it."  
"Oh..who's older?"  
"Hm?"  
"You and your brother...who's older?"  
"Oh..we don't know."  
Aki face-faulted. "You...don't know?"  
"Nope! We're twins, and my mom said she didn't pay attention to the minor things like who was older."  
"Oh..You're Chinese, right?"  
"Yup! Did you hear me talking to my sister?"  
"Yeah, how do you know Japanese?"  
"Papa taught me! Said he got to practice it alot with one of his old friends."  
"Really?"  
  
Lucrezia smiled as she saw Aki chatting with the little Chinese girl who had come in so suddenly. She was glad that the lonely little girl she'd seen in bed just a week ago was up and making friends.  
She blinked and straightened suddenly as a familiar voice reached her ears.  
"Yin Mei! Yin Mei!"  
"Onna, it's your fault for not keeping track of her!"  
"She went after YOUR son, Wu-pie. Yin Mei!!"  
"Argh! DON'T call me WU-PIE!"  
Lucrezia's mouth dropped open. So THAT's what he meant when he said that!  
"Sally!?"  
  
"Lucrezia?!"  
Sally eagerly ran forward and hugged her friend, ignoring the fact that Wu Fei was giving the twins a good talking-to they didn't deserve. After all, if he was going to teach them Martial arts, he couldn't actually expect them to behave. She pulled back and grinned, her blonde hair hanging loose down her back against her dark red sweater.  
"So! What brings you to Sapporo?"  
Lucrezia's smile faded slightly, casting a sideways glance at the three children sitting by each other. Sally followed her gaze, and blinked.  
"Oh! Who's the cute little girl Mu Lan's talking to?"  
"Aki." Lucrezia answered quietly.  
"Ah, Sally. Good to see you're doing well."  
"Zechs. Good to see you're...Oh, never mind."  
Zechs blinked, and then sighed. "So, how-"  
"SAI LIN!" A booming voice interrupted, and Sally looked up to see Wu Fei at her side, his cheeks slightly red. "Onna, do you know who Mu Lan is talking to?"  
Before she could answer, Zechs stepped slightly between them and placed a hand on each of their shoulders.  
"Well, we have 45 minutes before takeoff. Why don't I sit down and explain that."  
  
Sally's eyes widened with shock as Zechs finished the last of his story, and sat back with a grim look on his face. Wu Fei was holding her hand comfortingly, but that didn't stop tears from springing to her eyes.  
"Relena and Heero are...dead?" She whispered softly, afraid of the answer. Zechs nodded solemly. Sally lowered her head, tears threatening to spill over onto the linoleum floor. Wufei silently pulled her into a comforting embrace and she let the tears fall, not making any noise as she buried her face in his sweater and cried quietly. Wufei cast a forlorn glance over at the little girl and her siblings.  
"I could tell..The girl, Aki, she looks so much like Relena.."  
"So that's how you knew." Zechs said softly.  
Wu Fei sighed. "Ryosuke isn't exactly unique when it comes to facial features too, you know. Or hairstyles."  
"He looks just like his father." Lucrezia said, just as quietly.  
A moment of silence passed between them before Sally spoke.  
"But..why would anyone want to do that to Heero?" Sally whispered, rubbing tears from her eyes. "Why?"  
Zechs lowered his eyes. "We don't know, but...we think Relena was murdered as well."  
"Relena was..?!"  
"Yes..I couldn't get the full story from Ryosuke, but we think she was pre-poisoned when she was pregnant with Aki."  
"Poisoned?"   
"Yes, that's why we think she died so suddenly. I mean, she was very healthy through the course of her life..That's why I want you to take another look at the medical records, Sally. If she was poisoned, some levels in the blood will be different than normal, right?"  
Sally nodded. "Indefinitely. Histamine and protien, hormones, all that stuff."  
Not a second after she had said that, the loudspeakers crackled and a sweet-sounding woman started speaking Japanese, and Zechs was alerted by a small tug on his sleeve.  
"We're boarding." Ryosuke said evenly, and walked back over to his siblings. Zechs followed, showing their five tickets as they walked onto the almost-empty plane.  
"I kind of can't believe how outdated these land-to-land planes got." Zechs muttered as they found their seats. He noted that even though Wu Fei and Sally's tickets were on another end of the plane, they sat next to each other anyways. The plane was so empty that no one really knew the difference.  
  
"So, what's with the two grownups who don't speak Japanese?"  
"Oh..they're my aunt and uncle."  
"Really? You don't seem to like them very much."  
Aki simply shrugged as another stewardess appeared at the front of the plane with the microphone.  
"Hello everyone, and welcome to Sapporo International Passenger Lines. Very soon, we shall commence takeoff. May I please remind everyone at this time to please fasten their safety belts. We will reach our destination, Narita Airport in Tokyo, in about 30 minutes. Thank you for choosing Sapporo International."  
What the English-speaking people heard: 'Minna san, konnichiwa. Sapporo Joukyaku Kuuki ni youkoso. Mou soro soro kuuki no ririku suru tsumori de gozaimasu. Minna sama wa shiito beruto o musunde kudasai. Tokyo no Narita Kuukou ni sanjuppunkan de tsukimasu. Sapporo Joukyaku o tsukuru koto doumo arigatou gozaimasu."  
She bowed deeply before disappearing into the station at the front of the plane. Aki sighed, already feeling so homesick. 30 minutes, and then another 10 by train to 4 chome, 6 banchi, 14 gou; where she lived. A small, quiet little house sandwiched between the Tsuchida's and the Yamatani's. She missed it terribly. And somehow she just knew this was the last visit they would be able to make to their house in a long time.   
Takeoff went smooth, and after Aki was allowed to unfasten her seat belt she went over to Ryosuke who was talking to Kotaro.  
"'Niichan." she said quietly, tugging on his sleeve. Ryosuke peered down at his little sister before reaching down and lifting her onto his lap and hugging her.  
"What's wrong?" He asked quietly, hugging his little sister. Aki paused a moment.  
"We...we're not going to live at home anymore, are we?"  
Ryosuke froze. He never expected for her to catch on that quick.  
"No..no, we're not, Aki-chan."  
"...Sore jaa.."  
"Don't worry, we'll be staying with Uncle Zechs and Aunt Lucrezia in Europe-"  
"I don't WANT to go to Europe." Aki whispered, trembling. "I want to stay in Japan! I want to stay with my friends! I don't want to move out of 4 chome!" She wrapped her arms around her brother, hugging him fiercely.  
"Aki.." This time it was her younger brother Kotaro talking, stroking her dark brown hair soothingly. "Aki, I was only three when mom died, but one thing I remember is dad saying to me that I had to be brave. For my brother and my daisuki na little sister." He said, placing a comforting hand on her back.  
"Easy for you to say. You've got lots of courage. You never know what fear is." Aki muttered against Ryosuke's sweater.   
"Aki, courage isn't not having fear. It's about managing the fear that you feel. You're a total bakayaro if you're not scared of anything at some point in your life. Have you ever heard of the Monster Under the Bed? Man, I'll have nightmares for weeks! I'm terrified of that dude!"  
Aki giggled softly, but didn't pull her face out from her brother's sweater.  
"Aki, what I mean is, don't completely hate the idea of going to Europe. Put on a brave face and even though you're scared you have to learn to deal with your feelings. But y'know, we're not going anywhere, sis. We're still gonna be with you, no matter what."  
Aki sniffled and peeked out from behind the folds of Ryosuke's sweater.  
"Promise?" She whispered softly.  
Kotaro grinned. "I promise." He said, extending his pinky. Aki linked pinkies with him for a brief moment, and then threw herself into Kotaro's arms. Ryosuke grinned. His little brother always had a way with words he knew that he could never be good at. At least, not the way Kotaro could. He was never good at expressing his emotions. He chose to let his eyes do the talking and his actions the expressing. Like his father. He often remembered his mother holding him close, stroking his hair as he drifted off to sleep and whisper affectionately how he was so much like his papa. And as he would soon learn, it was often a wonderful blessing. But at the same time, a curse.  
  
The wind blew softly as the five traveled down the street, walking a short distance from the Sakuragao train station to their residence. To Lucrezia it was all a big maze, and only the children seemed to know where they were going. They passed rows and rows of houses and made numerous turns before she noticed Aki start to walk a little faster. She kept her eyes on the outside of the fences, because the names of the family of each house were printed on the outside, sometimes on the mailbox. Yatari, Nakano, Tsuchida...Yui.  
Aki was running by now and the boys were trying to catch up with her, standing back slightly as she threw open the front door. As Zechs and Lucrezia approached, she noticed that Aki wasn't going into the house, just standing looking sort of estranged in the doorway. As they approached the children from behind, Ryosuke slightly outstretched his hand and looked like he was about to say something to his sister. Aki cupped her hands to her mouth and called into the dark house.  
"Tadaimaaaaaaaaa!"  
Lucrezia's heart wrenched. Ryosuke had explained to her earlier that 'tadaima' was basically an equivilent of 'I'm home' and announced a returning person's arrival. And she knew that somewhere in her heart that Aki was half-expecting an answer. But only silence met the group's ears.  
Aki took a step into the house and called again.   
"Tadaimaa!!!"  
Again, only silence.  
Suddenly Aki took off running into the house, carelessly kicking off her shoes and running down the wodden hallway.  
  
She made a sharp right turn into the kitchen, running through into the living room and peering in.  
"Papa!" She called, continuing up the steps and down another hallway. "Papa! I'm home!!" She paused to push the door to his room open, and seeing it dark as well ran to the end of the hall, pushing the door open.  
"Papa! I'm ho-" Her voice cut itself short as the image of her father's dark study imprinted itself onto her mind. The computer was humming slightly, a strangely soothing sound that could always be heard from the room. Nothing was on his desk, no papers were out. The rows of CD's and disks lined neatly on one side were obviously untouched, by the way that dust had settled on them.  
Papa's gone. A tiny voice in her head whispered. Gone, gone, and he's not going to come back.  
"Papa!" She called again, a little more weakly. She leaned against the doorframe, tears filling her eyes.   
"Papa!"  
This time the call was desperate, desperate for a response, a word of comfort, for her father's voice. Her father's voice to tell her everything was alright, the past week had been a horrible dream, and now she could wake up and everything would be normal again.  
But her father was gone.  
Aki slid down the doorframe, slid until her bottom met the cool floor and she could slide any further. She let her muscles go slack, unlocking her knees and letting her legs fall stationary to the floor, and her arms hanging by her side. Tears dribbled down her cheeks as the silence suddenly became too loud to bear.  
Her papa was dead. He wasn't going to come home again. Ever.  
She pulled her knees to her chest as she started to sob, her small frame trembling. She wasn't ever going to see him again. He was gone.  
  
"Let her cry." Ryosuke said quietly as he led Zechs up the steps and into the hallway and into him and his brother's room. Zechs looked around. It was basically what you would expect. Bunk beds were pressed up against the wall-as far as they could get from the window, he noticed-and there was a desk and chair with two penstands and wire baskets on it and kanji papers strewn in and around the baskets on the desk. A toybox, shelves lined with books and a dresser adorned with pictures, small toys and other odds-and-ends...basically a normal bedroom for two normal boys.   
Wothout a word, he turned and left the boys' room, maneuvering around Kotaro (who was standing in the doorway) and opened the door to Aki's room, right across the hall.  
Aki's small bed was, once again, pressed against the wall as far away from the window as possible. A rainbow was painted on the wall her bed was up against and red pillows rested on a red-and-pink Hello Kitty bedspread. A smaller desk and chair, pink curtains, a dresser, origami this-and-that, a jewelry box...another ordinary little girl's bedroom. He heard a creak from the door next to him and peered out in time to see a flash of brown hair disappear into the room.   
Aki..  
Exiting her room, he slowly closed the door and pushed open the door to the room she had just gone into. The curtains were drawn shut but he could make out a bed, nightstand and dresser in the dark room, with another door leading to the bathroom.   
This was Heero's room.  
Aki had wrapped herself in the covers of the bed and now her breathing was even, and Zechs could tell she was asleep. He slowly exited the room, closing the door behind him.   
"Zechs!" A soft voice called, and he turned to see his wife behind him, her face slightly pale.  
"Lu?"  
"Zechs, I think you should come and see something." She said quietly, gently taking his wrist and leading him down the steps.  
  
Wishing on a dream that seems far off  
Hoping it will come today  
  
They sat at the kitchen table where about 7 thick books were sat in front of him. Four were white, one was pink and the other two were blue. He picked up the top white one and opened it slowly, and his eyes widened as he realized that what he was looking at was not a book, but a photo album.  
  
Into the starlit night,   
Foolish dreamers turn their gaze  
Wishing on a shooting star  
  
The first picture in the album was one of Relena, sitting upon the cement steps of some house, with 2-year-old Ryosuke on her lap, smiling happily. it was autumn, he could tell from the sweater and long skirt Relena was wearing and the sweater Ryosuke was wearing that had some sort of cartoon show or the other on it. The next was of Ryosuke playing in a pile of leaves in his tiny front yard, Heero sitting amongst the mess with him. Zechs chuckled at the next picture which was of Heero, looking slightly irked as his son stood on his lap and precariously placed leaves on the top of his father's head, laughing the whole time. He flipped through the album, carefully studying each picture for about 3 seconds before going to the next. One picture, though, he just couldn't take his mind off of. It was a picture of Heero, sleeping peacefully on the couch. Ryosuke was curled up beside him, sleeping just as peacefully, and Heero had a protective arm around his son. It sent a twinge through his heart. No matter how bad of a man Zechs could make Heero out to be, he loved his children more than anything. He himself was a father, and he remembered thinking the moment that his little daughter Ari was placed in his arms that he never, ever wanted to let her go. And he didn't doubt that Heero had shared his feelings whenever he had held his three children.  
  
But, what if that star is not to come?  
Will their dreams fade to nothing?  
  
"Well, we certainly can't say she was unhappy." Lucrezia said softly as she flipped through another photo album.  
"Hm.." He answered softly, picking up the blue book.  
"Oh..this must be Kotaro's." He said, seeing the first picture in the album which was Relena, sitting on the couch, with a small blue bundle in her arms and holding Ryosuke in her lap, letting him see his new baby brother.  
"Yes..And I have Ryosuke's."   
A few moments of silence passed before Zechs put down Kotaro's book and picked up the pink book, which he assumed was Aki's. The moment he opened it, he felt a cold fist envelope his heart and squeeze lightly. Taped to the inside of Aki's book, with obvious caution and carefulness, was a lock of Relena's hair.  
  
When the horizon darkens most,  
We all need to believe there is hope  
  
Unlike the boy's books, in which the first picture was Relena holding them and their sibling when they were just newborns, the first picture of Aki's was her when she was 6 months old. And he could tell because the writing on the side was in English.  
"Aki at 6 months..Aki and Ryosuke..Aki's first birthday..." Zechs read quietly, flipping through the album. After about a year and a half, the writing once again converted to Japanese and Zechs could no longer read it. He sighed softly, setting down the book. These, definitely, he would keep.  
  
Is an angel watching closely over me?  
Can there be a guiding light I've yet to see?  
  
"Where are you going?" Zechs said as he saw his wife stand up and set down the book she was looking through.   
"Over a few blocks down. I have to go see the 'family doctor'". She said, reading off a piece of paper in front of her. "Kouichi Watanabe. Apparently he knows the family really well. Maybe we can find something out. You never know." She smiled softly at him, and then leaned down and placed a soft kiss on his lips. "Watch the children. Oh, and try to talk to Ryosuke a little, will you?"  
And with that, she was out the door once again.  
  
I know my heart should guide me, but  
There's a hole within my soul  
  
"Aah yes, the Yui family. I do know them very well. I've been taking care of the little one ever since she was just a tiny infant." Dr. Watanabe, an elderly man in his early 60's with wire-rim glasses said as he sat down across from Lucrezia in his small makeshift office.  
"Please forgive the mess, it's a work office, and as you know, work can be a little rough sometimes." He said as he opened a filing cabinent.  
"Oh, it's quite alright." Lucrezia answered, a bit surprised that he spoke English so well. He produced five files and handed them to her, leaning back slightly in his chair.   
"The english transcripts are all there as well."  
"Yes..thank you."  
After a moment of silence, he leaned forward once again, his kind eyes locking with hers.  
"Is there something you would like to ask me, Mrs. Peacecraft?"  
  
What will fill this emptiness inside of me?  
Am I to be satisfied without knowing?  
  
"Well..I was wondering about how Heero was when you first met him."  
Dr. Watanabe's expression changed slightly as he heard this. He sighed, entwining his fingers.  
"Heero..well, how to explain..was very grief-stricken when he first came here to Sakuragao with his family. I could see it reflected in his eyes when he brought his two boys in for their first checkup. His wife had died and Aki, the little one, was so sickly-"  
"Aki was sick?"  
"Oh yes, when she was very little. She had a protien in her body that didn't cooperate with her immune system, and at times there was nothing I could do and that poor young man had to watch his baby daughter suffer. There's nothing worse than watching your child fall ill and knowing there's nothing you can do to help ease their pain." He leaned forward a bit more. "And then, when she was around 6 months old, I was able to aquire-well actually, it had to be made for her-an antidote of sorts that would literally dissolve all traces of the protien in her body. Within a week all the developmental progress she lacked from being sick-holding her head up, recognition, and basic muscle development-were all made up. In full, might I add. She hasn't been sick since." He lowered his voice. "But the fact that the protien was evident in her body made me a bit..oh, I hope I can say this without coming off the wrong way..suspicious."  
"Suspicious?"  
"Well..for awhile, I vaguely wondered if Aki's mother poisoned herself before Aki was born."  
"Poisoned herself??"  
"Maybe not intentionally, but she clearly ingested something she shouldn't have. I strongly believe that was why she died."  
  
I wish, then, for a chance to see,  
Now all I need...desperately...  
  
Zechs sat down at the kitchen table, directly across from the young boy who had, just a minute earlier, came down the steps announcing that they had to talk. Ryosuke took a deep breath.  
"I..I want to tell you..about that night. The night my mom was poisoned."  
Zechs nodded, encouraging the young boy. Ryosuke took another deep breath, figeting slightly, before calming himself down and staring Zechs straight in the eye. But not confrontationally. As if he had a painful secret kept inside him that was eating his soul.  
"The night it happened..was the night of my sixth birthday."  
  
Is my star to come...  
  
  
TBC 


	5. The Beginning

Hell is for Children-Chapter 5  
  
~  
Ryosuke groaned as he opened his eyes against the bright light pouring into his room from the window on the far wall, and he sat up rubbing his eyes. He kind of didn't want to leave his bed, but he also knew he had to.  
"'Niichan!" A tiny voice cried and he smiled as he saw his little brother clamoring up the ladder, still in his cute W-01 pj's that his mother had bought much to his father's dismay, up to the top bunk, where Ryosuke's bed was and then latching onto him.  
"Niichan! It's niichan's birthday!" Kotaro cried happily as he grinned up at his brother. "I made 'niichan a card!"  
"Great! But, 'taro-kun, are you allowed to climb the ladder by yourself?"  
"He's not by himself." He heard another voice say as his mother leaned against the ladder, smiling up at him, already dressed for the day ahead, her hair pulled back into a low ponytail considering that her yongest son loved to pull on her long, blonde locks.  
"Mama!" Kotaro cried happily, scampering over to the other end of the bed to be closer to his mother.  
"Happy birthday, Ryosuke!" She said, and Ryosuke slid down to the end of the bed and hugged his mother eagerly.  
"Mama! Want down!" Kotaro cried, wriggling in between Relena and Ryosuke.  
"Okay, okay." Relena said, picking up her youngest son and kissing him on the forehead. She smiled at Ryosuke and kissed him on the cheek, before picking up the little toddler and starting to pull out Kotaro's clothes, with him balanced on her hip.  
"Ahem." A deliberate word, spoken clearly from the doorway alerted Ryosuke of his father's presence.  
"Papa!" Kotaro cried, kicking his feet happily. Heero Yuy was leaning against the doorframe and watching his wife with one eyebrow raised, an expression that clearly asked what she was doing. Relena sighed before straightening and raising Kotaro, and Heero walked over and took the little boy from her arms.  
"Papa! Papa!" Kotaro said, hugging his father around the neck happily, the toddler's messy black hair becoming even more messed. Heero switched Kotaro onto one arm and hugged his wife with the other, kissing her lips softly.  
"You know how I feel about you holding the boys now." He said quietly, placing his hand on her swollen stomach.   
"Yuck! That's gross, Papa!" Kotaro cried upon seeing his father kiss his mother. Heero rolled his eyes.  
"Uh-huh, in about 15 years, you'll be saying different, I guarantee it."  
"Will not!"  
"Will too." Heero protested, then quickly and suddenly turned the little boy upside down in his arms and started tickling his belly.  
Ryosuke giggled over Kotaro's squeals and kicking of the legs, and Relena smiled when she saw Heero mount Kotaro on his shoulders and then reach up and pick up Ryosuke, holding both boys expertly.  
"Hang on, Kotaro." Heero reminded his youngest-his middle child in only three months-and rolled his eyes as Kotaro grabbed Heero's spiky bangs in both fists and then grinned down at his father.  
"I gotcha, papa!"  
Relena smiled happily as she watched her husband with the children, and then rested her hand on her stomach, a warm feeling spreading through her as she felt the little girl moving within her. Heero loved little children, and she had learned from their late-at-night whispered conversations before sleep claimed them both that despite the fact that their third child had yet to be born he was already anticipating their fourth, and also that he was just as anxious and excited for his first girl to be born as she was. She watched Heero set down the children and watched them scamper out of the room, and she smiled as he approached her, gently tilting her chin up and kissing her, his arms slipping around her waist.   
"How's my girl doing?" He said quietly, placing his hand once again on her belly, rubbing softly. She smiled.  
"Me, or the baby?"  
"Both of you." He answered, kissing her forehead. She leaned against him, closing her eyes.  
"I'm fine, really."  
"You look tired."  
"Do I?"  
"Yes."  
She opened her eyes and looked up at him with an amused expression.  
"You would have never talked this much 7 years ago."  
"7 years ago, I didn't have three children and a beautiful wife waiting for me at home." He said stroking her hair, watching it glitter in the dusty morning sunlight. She closed her eyes and leaned against him, snuggling up to him as he wrapped his arms securely around her.   
"You're not going to work today?"  
"No."  
She smiled knowingly at this information, at that he always used one of his 14 sick days to be home for his children's birthday. It was important to him, he said, and he wasn't going to miss the occasion.  
"Mama! Mama! I found them!" Ryosuke cried excitedly, and Relena giggled.  
"Looks like he found his birthday gifts."  
Heero smirked. "Looks like."  
~  
  
"Boys! Come on, we're leaving!"  
"Aw mom!" A young 5-year-old with sandy blonde hair and emerald green eyes said, clutching to his mom.  
"Do we GOTTA leave? Can we swim some more?"   
"No, Matt." Midii Barton said sternly, taking her son by the hand. Another little 6-year-old boy stood beside him, and she smiled.  
"Ready to go, Duo?"  
"Yup!" Duo said, rubbing a towel over his midback-length chestnut brown locks, which he almost always kept in a low ponytail. And sometimes a braid, like his Daddy.. He loved this pool, which was right by his and Matt's house. Matt's mom took them there all the time.  
"5 more minutes, mom?"  
"Matthew." Midii said, brushing a lock of wavy blonde hair away from her face. "Your father will be home soon and I have to start making-" She stopped short at the sight of her husband leaning against the pool's entrance gate, still in his work attire.   
"Daddy!" Matt cried, running towards his father. Trowa easily caught the boy before he could run into his stomach and lifted him onto his shoulders with Matt giggling happily.  
"Whacha doin' home so early, Daddy? Huh huh huh??" Matt said, reaching forward and grabbing his father's bangs and pulling them back, giggling insanely. Trowa couldn't help but smile.  
"Matthew." He said, trying to make his voice sound stern. Matt let go, giggling as the bangs 'snapped' back into place. Midii and little Duo approached, and Trowa set Matt down as he led Midii a few feet from the boys.  
"There's been a problem." He said quietly, taking her hand. "I need you to go home and fill a bag with some of Matt's clothes and your clothes, about 4 days' worth, and then take Duo over to his house and tell him to do the same. Let them bring a few toys." He added, almost as an afterthought. "Duo and Hilde are already gone with the baby, and we're going to meet them at the airport in a half hour."  
"What's wrong?" She whispered, her heart pabout ounding.  
"Nothing serious. Don't worry. I'll meet you at the airport in about a half an hour." He kissed her softly on the lips and then was gone, and Midii went back over to the boys and took both their hands. Her husband may have said nothing was wrong, but she was finding it increasingly difficult to believe him.  
  
His eyebrow twitched uncomfortably as he lay back on his bed, still in his pajamas. He sighed and turned onto his side, trying to go back to sleep. Which was, of course, to no avail. He hopped out of bed and slowly trekked over to his toybox, ploping down and pulling out his Gundam models and starting to play with them. After a few minutes, he tossed them down, frustrated. The dream he had experienced the night before was still fresh on his mind, and a jumble of names and words were running through his head. He couldn't seem to concentrate on anything else.  
He heard the door to his room open and turned to see his mother walk over to him, her pale blonde hair done up into a bun. She smiled, picking him up off the floor and hugging him.  
"G'morning, mama." He said, hugging her back.  
"I was half expecting you to be asleep, Daniel." She said, brushing his blonde wisps of hair away from his light blue eyes.  
"Well.." He began, staring into his mom's face. He had seen pictures of his mom when she was younger, and he kind of couldn't believe that her hair had been so long and that she had actually done her eyebrows like that..  
Needless to say now, she looked like a normal person, and in his pause of speech she began to get worried.  
"Is it something you need to talk to your father about?" She said quietly, rubbing his back. He nodded, and she smiled, kissing him on the forehead and set him down.  
"I'm going to be at the office for about 3 hours. I'll see you then."  
He watched as she walked out the door, and then after a few moments stood and walked out of his room himself, winding his way through the mansion's corridors. Finally coming to his father's office, he pushed it open and slowly walked in.  
"Yes?" His father said, not looking up from his work. Daniel silently walked over to him and wriggled his way into his father's lap, leaning against him. Quatre paused from his work and stared down at his son, stroking his hair.  
"Mama left." Daniel said quietly, and Quatre nodded.  
"She'll be back."  
They stayed in silence for a moment before Daniel looked up at his father.  
"Busy, daddy?"  
"Not much. What's bothering you?"   
Daniel was silent for a moment, wondering how to ask him about the dream when a particular name drifted by him. Deciding to ask his father straight out, little Daniel Winner stared up at his father with his innocent blue eyes and said,   
"Daddy? Who's Heero Yuy?"  
That was the moment the phone rang.  
  
Aki sighed softly as she sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. It felt like she had been asleep forever, but she knew that it had only been a few hours since she had fallen into unconsciousness. Slowly climbing out of her father's bed, she walked into her room and fished out her slippers from under the bed before slipping into them and padding down the stairs, turning the corner and coming face-to-face with her brother. She blinked. If she had known better, she would have thought she saw tears in his eyes the moment their gazes locked before he bolted up the narrow stairway into his bedroom.  
But, she knew better.  
A soft grumbling from her stomach reminded her that she was hungry as she turned into the kitchen and saw her uncle sitting at the table, obviously very deep in thought. She froze for a minute before turning away, deciding to act as if he wasn't there.  
  
She's ignoring me, Zechs thought as he saw the little girl walk over to a cabinent and pull out a plastic package, fumbling with the seal before finally pulling it open. A white square wrapped in the same thin, crinkly plastic emerged in her hand as she set the package on the counter and then pulled out a white ceramic jar before climbing up onto the smooth countertop. Zechs was about to stop her but protested against himself, watching silently as she opened a cabinent, got two small plates and then climbed back down.  
She now focused her attention to the plastic around the square and ripped it effortlessly, putting the jiggly square onto a plate and then putting the plate into the microwave. She went to the fridge and stood on her tiptoes, retrieving a bottle of soy sauce and closing the fridge. She opened the ceramic jar and took out a teaspoonful of what looked like sugar and dumped it onto the plate. She then opened the bottle of soy and added a liberal amount to the sugar, stirring it with her finger and seeming slightly pleased with the taste. Zechs cringed. Soy sauce..with sugar?  
The microwave binged and she took the plate out before walking over to a jar on the far side of the counter that held chopsticks, and took two small yellow ones before going to the table, sitting across from Zechs and stabbing the square-now with a thin crunchy layer on the outside-and dipped it in the mix before biting into the gooey inside.  
She ate in silence and he simply watched, wondering against wondering if he should try to talk to her. After all, this was his neice..  
The tension was suddenly broken as Kotaro suddenly walked in, and froze as he saw Aki.  
"Nani taberun da ka?" (What're you eating?)  
"Mochi." She answered, before taking a huge bite. Kotaro's eyes lit up.   
"Mochi!"   
He walked further into the kitchen and began the same process Aki did, and soon plopped down on the chair next to her, handing her another mochi since she had eaten hers.  
"Now, what's this stuff called?"   
"It's Mochi." Kotaro replied. "It's basically compacted rice that gets really soft and yummy when you heat it up."  
"Oh.."  
"Yeah, I love th' stuff."  
"Gochisou sama." Aki mumbled quietly as she set her chopsticks down and left the table, once again walking up the steps.   
They were silent at the table for a few minutes until Zechs spoke.  
"Aki..doesn't like me, does she?"  
"Aki just doesn't like people. She'll get over you in time, don't worry." He took another bite of his mochi. "She's really fun when you get to know her. And sweet." He made a face. "And sometimes annoying."  
Zechs chuckled softly, leaning back in his chair. He got a serious expression on his face as he looked at Kotaro.  
"What do you mean, Aki 'doesn't like people'?"  
Kotaro was silent for a moment, staring at Zechs, and then slowly turned his attention to the mochi.  
"Well...kids can be really cruel to other kids sometimes."  
  
He stared at the huge floor-to-celing window behind the desk in his office with anger-filled eyes, silently willing the glass to break and shatter under his glare. At least that would help him release some stress. He sat back, staring distastefully at the bright lights and bustling people moving about on the dark, snow-slushed streets of Rome, Italy. He stole a glance at the clock.  
3:45 AM.  
Soon, very soon, his brother would be arriving from L2. He would spend time with his wife, he knew, and then he would go off to give another peace-promoting speech.  
His older brother was pathetic.  
Not only had he stepped up into a position once occupied by Relena Peacecraft, he had also had the nerve to give that annoying organization - The 'Preventers' - an increase in their funding. Yes, Giovanni Marcilio did not like the Preventers. 'Dislike' was hardly strong enough. 'Deep-rooted hatred' was probably better. Yes, much better. He hated them, especially when he thought of their higher-up agents and thought of Heero Yuy...  
An evil grin spread across his face. Ah yes, Jared should be back at any moment. And when he arrived...  
The smooth 'woosh' of the door opening made his grin spread wider, as if at all possible. Oh yes, this would be sweet..  
"Sir! G rank agent 'Jared' reporting, SIR!"  
"Spare me the formalities." He growled, spinning smoothly in his chair to face the young man. The soft light revealed that he was a young man himself, barely 28 years old.  
"How'd it go?"  
Jared relaxed, taking on the posture of an old friend talking to someone he hadn't seen in a long time - which was pretty much the truth.  
"Yuy's dead. His brats are obviously now under Zechs' care."  
"Heh..ah yes, the old Lt. Zechs. I remember him well. He's grown soft...just like Yuy. And it'll be his downfall..just like Yuy." Giovanni chuckled in remembrance before staring at Jared again. "And? Where's the girl?"  
Jared froze, and a small spark ran through Giovanni's spine. He straightened.  
"Jared. Where. Is. That. Brat!"  
"They lost her, boss. In Sapporo."  
"WHAT!"  
"Sorry, sir.."  
"I don't believe this." Giovanni said slowly, glaring. "Jared...wasn't it also your fault that the girl is alive?"  
"Excuse me, sir?"  
"I sent one of your agents to poison Yuy's woman. To kill her, and that little brat inside her. But he didn't succeed. And that's why the girl's alive, and that's why I WANT HER."  
Jared shivered, obviously expecting to be shot at any minute, when Giovanni laughed.  
"Ah Jared, perhaps it is because of you I am recieving this benefit. A child who's immune system could - at birth - withstand the results of CLC. I'm impressed with her straight off."  
"Ah, but...the oldest knows."  
Giovanni's merry exterior disappeared in an instant as he leaned forward, his voice low and taunting.   
"What..did you say..?"  
"The oldest...Ryosuke, I think, knows. I think he saw Ichiro putting the stuff into her food -"  
"DAMN IT. Ichiro won't keep his mouth shut long enough. Have him killed before the day's over." He leaned forward, his eyes dark. "I shall repeat this only once, Jared. Kill the oldest, kill Zechs and his wife, and get the little one to me." He sat back, giving a dismissing wave of his hand. "Do what you will with the middle child - perhaps donate him to the labs so he can be closer to his sister. After all, I'll turn her into a little lab rat just like her Daddy..a fitting end, wouldn't you say?"  
Without waiting for the answer, he chuckled and turned away from the window. Oh yes, this was going to be a very very interesting year.  
  
  
Ok, I'm sorry this is so short. you try being a sophomore, plus grade tracking and overseas programs and homework...it's not pretty. bye bye.  
  
~Little Dylan, the stressed-out Sophomore 


	6. Hell Is For Children Author's notes

Author's notes  
  
Hello! This is Lil' Dilly here with a midbreak! The next chapter to HIFC will be out within the next week, I promise! But first, a few notes and explanations of HIFC, including the family lineups.  
  
First off, I tried to make the children more realistic and appealing. It seems that in all the Next Generation gundam wing fics, the children are all are wild, rambunctious, and getting into trouble. While I haven't gone much into alot of the children's personalities, I tried to deviate from that particular brand of illustration. Matt, for example, is one whom you'd expect to be calm, quiet, and nice, considering his father. I added an ironic twist by modeling him after Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes - A wild, off-the-wall little boy who looks at the means, and never the end. And by doing that I successfully subdued little Duo's personality by making him a bit more calmer than one would have guessed from Duo and Hilde's son. Zack is a calm, quiet little boy as well.  
Aki Yuy and her family are the main part of Hell Is For Children and they will continue to be when HIFC develops into my AC 217 arc, in which the pilot's children are all grown up. We haven't explored Aki's personality much and because of her father's death she is an enraged and saddened little girl. As the story continues we will get a glimpse of her personality before her father's death, as well as more exploration into why the family is falling apart. Kotaro, Aki's older brother, has a bit more of Relena's personality in him - A good speaker and a rational thinker. Ryosuke is mostly like Heero, having lived with his father's influence for so long - He's calm, quiet, and an observer who's not much for words.  
Daniel, whom you've only got a glimpse of but as you will come to see in future chapters, is the mixed-message boy. The one who will be in the back of the group when you're about to sneak out of the house at 11 PM and whisper, 'Guys! We can't go out now! It's 11 at night!...We better wait 'til 12, so that way everyone's DEAD asleep.' He's a very sweet little boy who enjoys being around his friends.  
Yin Mei Chang, at 9, is the oldest child and 'Xiailin' (female inheritor, traditionally married off to the leader of another clan) of the Dragon Clan and was named after Mei Lan. She's got a matured personality and is very dedicated to her studies and to her martial arts. Her seriousness counteracts her younger sister Mu Lan's ditziness and careless, cheerful disposition. And in turn Mu Lan's ditziness in turn counters her twin brother Leun's calm placidness, which attributes to their fighting skills with each other.  
Arianna Peacecraft is a bit of a brat, with a very gung-ho attitude. You say black, she will say white. She has a very sharp tounge and clever wit like her mother, but her looks are attributed to her father's side. And in turn Dominic Peacecraft is a bit more calmer, not quite placid but not outgoing either. He attributes most of his looks to his mother.  
Every fic I also looked at has had all of the children with strictly American - And common - names: Kate, Justin, Mark, Stephen, etc. I wanted to bring out the children's cultural background by giving them names that were appropriate to their heritage - Heero and Relena's children were given Japanese names, and Wufei and Sally's children were given Chinese names. Zack is a name that is German in origin, and Arianna is an Italian name. Quatre's son is named Daniel because we opened a book and found the first name that fit him.   
I also varied the ages, considering how all of the children in the other fics are all one age. Mulan is five, and Daniel has just turned six, and Matt is six as well, along with Duo. Zack is two years old. Aki is four and her brother Kotaro is seven, and Ryosuke is 10. Yin Mei is 9, as are Arianna and Dominic. By making the children's ages close but not that close, it allowed them to have bonds with each other and yet at the same time be different in some way from each other. And using the children as a medium alot of different discussions can come upon themselves as well, such as religion and ways of life, which will become a big issue as the Yuy children's views of 'normal' will have to change, because of the country they are moving to. What is normal for their cousins are frightening and scary to them, and I hope that I am able to write well enough to show the conflicting emotions on both sides of the move, as well as from the other children and parents after seeing the children of two people who disappeared ten years ago.  
On that subject, it's very cliche for Heero and Relena to just run off together, and I'm trying to divert from that by making it different than most others. Future chapters will show what they went through to get to where the children are now, and that they weren't always so friendly towards the idea about a family so early in life. But for now, enjoy the new chapter, coming soon.   
  
^_^ I hope this cleared up a few things, like what I'm trying to accomplish through this story. Ja ne!  
  
-Little Dylan 


	7. The Conclusion of the Beginning

It had begun to snow as quickly as the sun had faded from the sky, leaving the world shrouded in darkness with only the streetlights to show any signs that the world was going on outside. Zechs was once again sitting in the living room and looking at the photo albums, not really paying attention to anything except the children who were a few feet away from him.  
"Walk." Ryosuke said carefully, putting stress on the syllables.  
"Aruku. Walk." Aki repeated slowly, her brow furrowing in confusion. "'Aruku' tte, eigo de jidoushi darou no ka?"  
"Sou da." Ryosuke nodded, affirming whatever she had just said. Aki leaned back and stretched slightly, standing and rubbing her bandaged wrists.  
"Neru yo. Oyasumi." She said quietly, starting to walk towards the stairs to her room. Zechs followed her with his eyes as she trudged up the stairs, and then looked to Ryosuke.  
"What'd she say?"  
"That she was going to bed."  
  
Aki, having pulled down her hair from it's pigtails and changed into her pajamas, slowly pulled down the comforter to her bed and climbed in, shivering slightly at the cool temperature of the sheets. As she faced the wall where the bright rainbow was painted, she followed the pattern of colors with her eyes. She never did notice how bright the red was, or how pretty the green was..or that the blue was the color of her eyes. Her eyes and her papa's eyes.  
Aki sobbed quietly and hunched beneath the covers, tears dribbling down her cheeks as she fisted the sheets in her hand. Her papa always came to tuck her in, would always kiss her on the forehead and hug her. Now she was all alone beneath the cold sheets, with no more hugs to comfort her. She didn't want to sleep anymore, not since the nightmares. So she lay with the covers pulled over her head, staring at the shadows the streetlights shining through the window created in her room through the sheets. She let out a shaky sigh and wrapped her arms around herself, closing her eyes against the will of her conscious mind and letting her head flop idle onto the pillow below.  
"Papa..."  
  
Chapter 6  
A Father's Love  
  
There's another world inside of me   
That you may never see  
There's secrets in this life  
That I can't hide  
  
"SNOW!"  
She quickly pressed her hands to the cold windowpane, her bright azure eyes widening as she saw the soft flakes falling from the gray sky onto the ground below. She pushed herself away from the window and ran through the corridor, around the various maids who all shouted at her to stop running, and into the rec room, where her brother was studying.  
"DOMINIC! IT'S SNOWING! SNOW! Neve, neve, neve-"  
"Ari. It's snowed every single year for the past nine years since you were born. This year is no different." Dominic said in a slight monotone, his dark head still bent over his book. Arianna grumbled slightly and pushed her pale blonde hair out of her eyes.   
"Idiota!" She stuck her tounge out at him and then turned and ran to the young woman sitting in the corner, throwing her arms around her.  
"Mariemeia! Neve cadare! cadare li!" She said excitedly, her eyes wide.  
"Si, si." Mariemeia answered back in Italian, smiling at the young girl. "You like winter, don't you?"  
"I love it!" She said, grinning happily. Her grin faded slightly, though, as she stared out the window. "But I want Daddy and mama to come back...they've been gone a long time."  
Mariemeia smiled sadly at the little girl, and then patted her back.  
"Well then! Let's pass the time, shall we? You still have some English homework, don't you?"  
Ari blinked a few times before hunching her shoulders, dragging herself back to the table and opening the folder marked "Inglese"  
"Hahaha.." She muttered dejectedly. Pulling out a piece of paper, she slapped the folder back down onto the table before leaning over the evil print, pencil in hand.  
"Find the exact opposite of the selected word.." She read, her brow furrowing. Her English was pretty good, and she could talk, but she had a slight vocabulary lack.  
"Dominic! What's an 'exact opposite'?"  
" 'exact' Is just emphasis. Exact opposite means the same as opposite."  
"Oh...well, they coulda just said that." She muttered, glaring at the paper. After about five minutes of doing the work mentally, she sighed and and turned to look out of the only ceiling-to-floor window in the rec room, and smiled slightly at the sight of snow falling onto the ground three stories below.  
"I wonder what Daddy's doing right now.."  
  
"NO! NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!"  
Zechs winced inwardly as the girl's shrieks reached a level that he was sure wouldn't rate on a decibal system, fighting not to plug his ears as she continued to yell.   
"Ok, ok, AKI! Calm DOWN!" He yelled, raising his voice slightly to see if he could actually hear himself above her screams. He grated his teeth and pinched the bridge of his nose, racking through his brain for a solution as she continued screaming, her head shaking from side to side violently.  
"NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!"  
Zechs groaned and sank into a kitchen chair, trying to think of something and trying to keep from crying himself..  
Ok, you've faced war, betrayal, rebellion, your sister running off with your archenemy among many other things. You should be able to calm down a four-year-old girl.  
Should be.  
Lucy...come home soon, girl. Pretty please? He thought, tossing a glance at the clock. No use, it was at least 3 more hours until his wife and Ryosuke were due home, leaving him with Kotaro (Who was standing by the kitchen door with his head tilted slightly away, and a body pose that just SCREAMED 'What're you gonna do now, huh?') and Aki, who had been due three minutes ago to run out of breath.  
As if on cue, she stood a bit shakily, her face red and tears shimmering in her eyes, and sucked in a deep breath.  
Oh no..  
"WATASHI WA ZETTAI IKANAI! IKANAI IKANAI IKANAI IKANAI!" She screamed, starting to stomp around the kitchen. Zechs didn't have to learn Japanese to know what she was saying. 'I won't go.'  
He willed his eardrums not to burst as her screams reached an earsplitting level and groaned again, clenching his fists. Kotaro, now noticing the reaction and that Aki was getting a bit...eccentric, waited until she was near enough to Kotaro for him to spin her around, grabbing her shoulders.  
"AKI!" He yelled even louder - if that was heavenly possible - and Aki only shook her head in response and pulled her fist back.  
"AKI WA IKANAI!" She screamed, her voice slightly raspy, and thrust her fist forward into the wall behind him.  
The reaction from Aki was not what surprised him - he had been expecting her to hit something for awhile now - but the reaction from the wall. He watched as Aki's knuckle hit the paint, cracking it, as her clenched fingers went through the thin layer of wood, as her fist went through the plaster, as her arm went through the wall.  
All was silent in the kitchen as Aki pulled her fist out of the mess, sniffling as she saw the bruises and scratches on her hand near her fingers and knuckles, the rest being protected by the bandages that still covered her wrist and part of her lower arm.  
"Dekita." She mumbled quietly, and slowly sat down on the kitchen floor, leaning against the wall with her head very near the hole.  
Another moment passed before Zechs stood, walking unsurely over to the hole in the wall and the dangling pieces of chalky plaster. His eyes darkened slightly as he saw the pieces that had fallen into the gaps of the wall and saw that the inner wall right across from it had been cracked slightly, knowing that's probably what stopped Aki's fist. He turned to look at Aki's medical file on the table and his palms itched when he saw the piece of paper on top listing the family doctor's name and office address. There was something he wanted to discuss with this 'doctor' about Aki. Standing fully, he noticed that Aki had slumped against the floor, completely asleep, and that Kotaro was gathering her into his arms to take upstairs.   
Dammit..I can't leave these kids alone! I need a babysitter.  
He rolled his eyes. Right. Fat chance. He'd have to wait until tomorrow to see this guy, considering that his office closed in 2 hours. His eyebrow twitched slightly at that small detail and his wife's timing, for questions and a mad request for answers were pushing on his nerves (Which had been grated thin by Aki's screaming).   
Looking over at the wall and making a mental note of the damage, he started to head into the living room when the soft chime of the doorbell sounded through the house. Narrowing his eyes at the door, he walked over to it and turned the boltlock, throwing it open, not at all prepared to see a high school student standing on the Yui's doorstep.  
They stared at each other for about 2 minutes before she shakily spoke.  
"Ano...My name is Chieko Yamatori...would you know if Ryosuke or Kotaro or Aki were home? Or.." She backed up slightly. "Even living here anymore, after what happened..?"  
"They live here." he said, glaring at her. School uniform, looks about 18, black hair...typical. "Why do you want to know? And who are you?"  
"Um..like I said before, I'm Chieko Yamatori. I take care of the children for 4 hours after school...I'm a daily babysitter, you might say...."  
His eyebrow raised slightly as he heard the word 'babysitter' and he held the door open wider, a smile working it's way onto his face.  
"Well, come right in, Ms. Yamatori.."  
  
"Hey Duo, say something in German."  
"...Sheisse."  
"What does that mean?"  
"No idea. I hear my dad say it all the time though."  
Matt rolled his eyes and sat back on the couch to the hotel room in Japan, his gameboy long forgotten.   
"Man..when do we get to go swimming again? This place has a pool!"  
"I don't think my mom wants to let me go. I mean, last time we went to a hotel pool we kinda flooded it."  
Matt grinned and rocked back slightly, slouching on the couch as light brown, almost blonde hair drifted in front of dark emerald eyes. "Yeah! I remember that! Man, I didn't even know my dad KNEW those words. Heck, I didn't even think my dad was capable of yelling!"  
Both boys were interrupted by the door opening, and Hilde walked in holding baby Zack with Midii to her right. A young woman with blonde hair and three children followed, smiling at them.  
"Boys?" Hilde prompted.  
"Hi, Mrs. Chang." They said, sounding a bit uninterested.  
"Hello boys! You've grown." Sally said pointedly, setting Mulan down. Mu Lan glared suspiciously at Duo for a moment before walking over to him and narrowing her eyes.  
"You." She growled, leaning closer. Duo leaned back slightly.  
"Uh...me?"  
"You!"  
Duo gulped at the five-year-old.  
"Why ME?! Why not him!?" He yelled, pointing to Matt.  
"HEY!"  
"Because!" Mulan said, cutting him off and jabbing a finger into his chest, speaking slightly broken english. "Blondie is not dump three cartons of pudding into Mulan's hair! Not like Braid boy!" She yelled, jabbing him in the chest.  
"WHO'S a blondie?!"  
"B-but that was last year!" Duo complained, backing up further until his back hit the soft padded back of the hotel couch.  
"And Mulan STILL embarassed! You insulted Mulan's honor! By the code of family clan, you die!" Mulan yelled, pointing a finger at Duo. His mouth fell open slightly.  
"Wha....wha...DIE?"  
"Oh-kay, we've taken it far enough with the whole 'death' part." Sally announced, picking up Mulan who was still fuming. "Say, you boys want to go eat somewhere?"  
"YEAH!" They both cried at the same time, joined by Leun. Mulan blinked and looked at her mother.  
"Huh? Mama? Where's papa?" She asked in Chinese, scanning the room.  
"Uh...um...your father and Duo's father are getting...reaqquainted." She said, smiling and not wanting to tell Mulan that her father had chased 'braid boy's' father out of the hotel with his shimetar after Duo had made a remark about Yinmei's looks when she got 'older'.  
"Mulan's hungry! She wants to eat at a playplace!" Mulan said eagerly in English, hopping up and down slightly. Duo stuck his tounge out at her.   
"Don't come crying if you get hurt in one of our 'games'."  
"Hm! Mu Lan can beat braid boy anytime!"  
"Oh, izzat so?!"  
"So!" Mu Lan said, sticking her tounge out at him.  
"Well, don't blame me if I accidentally hit you."  
Hilde looked to Sally after her son made that last comment, to see Sally covering her mouth, as if trying not to laugh.  
"Braidboy can no hit Mulan."  
"Oh? And if I do?"  
"Mu Lan do this!" Mulan said, stepping forward and grabbing Duo's wrist, sweeping her foot behind his and locking their ankles, and then swung her foot forward and slammed her other arm into Duo's stomach, making him flip once and then land on the ground with a solid 'thud'.  
"Oowww..."  
"Tai Xian Qi?" Hilde asked, looking to Sally who was trying so hard not to laugh.  
"No, basic aikido. Wufei taught it to her when some boy at her kindergarten wouldn't stop bugging her..." At this she trailed off and burst into laughter, trying not to laugh too hard. Duo groaned from his place on the floor and Hilde walked over to him, supressing a grin herself as she helped him up.  
"Now, what have we learned today about saying things to Mu Lan?" She scolded in German, brushing his clothes off. Duo winced and turned slightly, cracking his back.  
"Maintain a safe distance of 20 feet if you value your spine."  
She sighed and shook her head. "Duo, I'm going to teach you something called 'Open mouth, insert foot'."  
"Sounds painful."  
"Duo!"  
"Sorry."  
"Basically, you just don't say anything that's gonna get you in trouble."  
"That's it?"  
"Well...it's harder than it looks, but more on that later. Come on, we'll go get something to eat."  
"With entertainment! Introducing my favorite Christmas song!" Matt yelled, and Duo grinned as they started to sing.  
"Dashing through the snow, on a pair of rusty skis, 'oer the hills we go, SMASHING INTO TREES!"  
Sally groaned and turned to Midii. "How sweet, quiet you and calm, collected Trowa produced THAT little monster, I will never know."  
"Oh, he wasn't so calm when Matt set fire to the living room carpet, I'll tell you that." She said, laughing and picking up Matt.   
"Well, let's go! I'll call Duo and tell him to meet us up at the fast food place near the department store."  
  
There's another world inside of me   
That you may never see  
There's secrets in this life  
That I can't hide  
  
"Ano..Watanabe sensei? There's a man who says he needs to speak..with you...?"  
"Hm? Well then, Kuriko, let him in!"  
No sooner had he said that than Zechs walked past the nurse into the office, seating himself across from Dr. Watanabe. Dr. Watanabe smiled at the young man and folded his hands in front of him.  
"Well, to what do I owe this confrence, Mr. Peacecraft?"  
He paused for a moment before answering in a low voice.   
"Well...Aki...got a bit upset at the house.."  
"Oh dear...who am I looking at, and what's broken?"  
"..Broken?!"  
"Well, yes. Last year Aki broke Ryosuke's arm and Kotaro's ankle...poor girl doesn't know her own strength. So am I looking at the older one, or the younger boy?"  
"...She put her fist through a wall!"  
"Oh, is that it then?" Dr. Watanabe smiled and relaxed. "I certainly didn't want to set any bones today.." His smile disappeared at the look on Zechs' face and he sighed. "Perhaps...an explanation is in order..."  
  
Somewhere in this darkness  
There's a light that I can't find  
Maybe it's too far away...  
Maybe I'm just blind...  
  
"Heero Yuy wasn't always 'Heero Yuy'. He was a young boy livng in L1 with his mother..his father was long gone."  
"May I ask how you know all of this?"  
"All in good time, Mr. Peacecraft. Allow me to tell you a story."  
"..Okay."  
"I think I shall start this story...by telling you about a young girl, Akiko Shihara. Aki was very young when she met and fell in love with a young man who had transferred into her school, Hayato Takada, who was secretly an operative for the Japanese military which collapsed in AC183. The two, being young and lovestruck, moved in with each other after graduation. Of course, happiness wouldn't find them easily. Before they could even be married, Hayato was called to a military base in Germany. Having no other choice, he went, leaving Akiko with an unborn child. Before he left, he asked his cousin, who was in the military as well, to give Akiko the name of the base they were stationed at so that she could at least write letters. His cousin, Torashi Watanabe, took on the fake identity 'Odin Lowe' just before he 'betrayed' the army and started to work for OZ. Months passed, and Aki gave birth to a little boy.. Ryosuke Shihara."  
Zechs blinked. Aki and Ryosuke..  
"That little boy would later be given the name Heero Yuy. Akiko and Hayato were only 18 when Ryosuke..Heero...was born, and Hayato knew that he now had a son, and told Odin, who at that time was at the base with him. Akiko sent him letters and pictures of his son, which he kept in a manila envelope with his letters to her. The base was attacked and Hayato...he was killed. Before he died he asked Odin Lowe to take care of Akiko and his son. Odin returned to Japan and lived in the same apartment building for 2 more years. When a bomb was planted in the building....Aki was killed as well. Ryosuke survived, but he was only two. Odin raised Ryosuke until he was about eight, and then Odin was killed."  
  
Maybe I'm just blind...  
  
"Wait." Zechs interrupted, leaning forward. "Now tell me. How do you know all of this?"  
The old man smiled sadly. "Odin Lowe...or Torashi Watanabe..was my son. Hayato was my nephew...my only nephew. I kept tabs on his son as a simple repayment of all he did for me when he was alive. Perhaps coincidence brought Heero to 4 Chome to live, perhaps not. But he knew, and all the children have taken to calling me 'Grandfather'." He chucked a bit at this. " It is safe that I tell you this now, because everyone in this story is now dead, their records burned, except for the copies which I have."  
He nodded, his mind inwardly whirling. Heero had a family... "Continue, please.."  
"Well, when he was eight, he was taken in by a scientific studies group...and he was trained to be a gundam pilot. They called it 'Project Dreamchild'. Certain enhancement chemicals were put into his body...and when they were sure that they had 'grown in' to his cells, they were taken back out. The effect remained, and so did some of the chemical makeup...And that's what helped Heero's daughter survive when Relena was poisoned. A chemical called 'CLC' was mixed into her food, and it made her violently ill...the two days after, the symptoms seemed to disappear, but it was eating up the protiens inside of her body, and the muscle tissue, making her weaker without anyone knowing. The stress that giving birth put on her..is what caused her to die because of the state the chemicals had put her in."  
  
So hold me when I'm here  
Love me when I'm wrong  
Hold me when I'm scared  
And love me when I'm gone  
  
"Well, at least now we can't hear them scream." Duo said pointedly as he stared at the windows that separated the playplace from the rest of the fast food restraunt. He was rocking a dozing Zack back and forth in his arms. Mulan was sitting in Wufei's lap drawing, and Trowa was sitting to his left watching as little Duo ('Junior') and Matt took the hollow plastic balls found in the playplace and started hurling them at each other, screaming something about a battle to the death.  
"Haochira, xaichira, nekohanten.." Mulan sang softly as she scribbled a picture, and Wufei glanced at Duo.  
"So..your woman's expecting again, is she?"  
Duo grinned. "Yeah! Sally told you, huh?"  
"Hm...don't you think two is enough?"  
Duo blinked. "Uh..no? Hey Trowa, why don't you have another kid?"  
"Midii pales at the idea of having another child." He said, shaking his head slightly.  
"Heh...I think if my son shoved french fries up his nose and flooded hotel pools, I'd think twice."  
"No you wouldn't." Wufei said, bouncing Mulan on his lap.  
"Of course you wouldn't...Junior does all of those things with Matt, and you're expecting your third."  
"Heh...they're partners in crime, huh." Duo commented, stroking Zack's dark hair and smiling at his son. "He's sleeping..."  
"That one's a bit more like Hilde, thank God." Wufei said softly, looking over at Zack. Duo grinned proudly.   
"Yeah, this one's something, that's for sure.."  
"Trowa! Your son is flooding the tunnels of the playplace with plastic playpen balls!"  
Trowa sighed and stood up. "He's always my son at times like this..."  
"You mean when he's flooding stuff."  
"Kids. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em, love 'em too much to change anything." Duo agreed, nodding.  
  
Everything I am  
And everything you need  
I'll also be the one  
You wanted me to be  
  
It was a few hours after his funeral when the children were to meet with the rest of the 'gang', as the pilots had been dubbed, and then tomorrow their things were to be packed up and sent back to Europe. Knowing that they would be homesick, Zechs had arranged for some remodeling on the hall their bedrooms and other rooms were in, and had the bathroom and their playroom remodeled to be more 'Japanese' from what he had seen in their house. Kotaro had told him that they 'Appreciated it' and Ryosuke just looked at him with a look that was unreadable.  
  
"C'mon, Mulan, PLEEEZE! Just one!"  
"No way, braid boy! You want Yan Yan snack, you go buy OWN Yan Yan!"  
"Will you please stop calling it a Yan Yan, that means something not so nice in English.."  
"IS YAN YAN!"  
"Okay, okay!"  
Duo huffed and sank further down into the couch that all of the children were sitting on. Leun was coloring in his book while sitting on his older sister Yin Mei's lap, Mu Lan was eating her Yan Yan, Duo was huffing and Matt was playing his gameboy with Zack sleeping next to him with his head in his lap. All children turned their attention to the door when it slowly creaked open, to reveal Dorothy holding a very sleepy-looking Daniel by the hand.   
"Hello! Is anyone here?"   
"I am!"  
"So am I."  
"In body, but not in spirit."  
"DANIEL!!!!"  
Daniel blinked as he slowly forced his eyes open the rest of the way, the last thing he saw being Mulan jumping at him.  
"DANIEL! I MISSED YOU!" She yelled, running full force into him and effectively flooring him. When the dust cleared Daniel was on the ground with a dazed look in his cloudy blue eyes and Mulan was straddling his waist, giggling.  
"Poor guy never saw it coming.." Duo mumbled sympathetically.  
"Guess what, guess what! On the plane Leun said he'd slice me if I took his crayons but I took them and he didn't slice me cause he missed and Daddy yelled at him and then I met this girl and her name is Aki and then she had crayons too but then mama took me back to here and Duo was here and I don't like Duo so I wouldn't give him a Yan Yan and he said 'Yan Yan' is something bad in english, what's yan yan in English cause I don't know, I think Duo's making it up like the time he told me my Jell-o was alive and are you even listening to me!?"  
"All of that in one breath." Matt whispered, amazed.  
"Hey! Daniel, no fair! We see each other after a year and suddenly you die!?" She grabbed his cheeks and tugged on them, pulling them outwards. "No fair! Mulan gots lots to tell you ! Y'know, if you do this, you kinda look like this squirrel I always see in the backyard.."  
Dorothy's laughter had brought everyone else in from the other room, and now Sally picked up Mu Lan, trying to keep from laughing herself.  
"Sweetie, Daniel needs to breathe."  
"Huh?"  
"I was tired from jet lag...but I'm not anymore. Thanks, Mu Lan." Daniel said a bit out of breath, sitting up.   
'Is welcome! Anytime, Dan chan!"  
Sally smiled and then set Mulan down, nodding at Dorothy.  
"Your husband's here already. Play nice, kids."  
"We will." They all chorused as the adults left the room. All was silent for a few moments.  
"Here ya go, Matt. You left this at my house last week." Daniel said, pulling out a slingshot.  
"Wahoo! My slingshot! I was looking EVERYWHERE for this guy!" Matt said excitedly, hugging the slingshot.  
"He left it at my house two weeks ago." Duo said, smirking.  
"You're just jealous." Matt said, sticking his tounge out.  
"Bah. You couldn't hit the side of a house two feet away from you."  
"Oh yeah!?" Matt said, his eyes scanning the room. He grinned as he saw a vent opening at the very top of the wall near the ceiling, with a bolt and screw missing, leaving a hole just big enough to shoot something through.  
"Hey Duo. Got a marble?"  
"Will I get it back?"  
"..Nope."  
"Okay, I'll give you a crappy one then." Duo said, pulling out a bag and fishing through, pulling out a small, clear ball. Matt nodded towards the vent.  
"How much will y'all give me if I score a marble in the hole up there?"  
Duo squinted. "25 cents."  
"50 cents, if you make it."  
"That's mah man, Leun!" Matt said, grinning. "Okay boys, show me the money!"  
"I'll toss in something too." Daniel said, pulling 30 yen out of his pocket.   
"Awright! One whole dollar! I better make this one count.." Matt said, pulling back the elastic on the slingshot.  
"Ready...aim..." Matt whispered under his breath. "Fire!"  
He let go, and everyone watched as the marble made a beeline to the hole, swooshing straight in and proceeding to bounce around in the vents.  
"YEAH!" Almost everyone in the room yelled, throwing up their hands. Matt grinned. "Pay up!"  
"Only cause it was a good show!" Duo said, grinning as he handed over the quarter. Leun nodded and Daniel just grinned as they put the money in Matt's palm.  
"MATTHEW JOSIAH BARTON!" A voice from the other room rang out.  
"Hit the deck, it's mom!"  
The door to the lounge swung open and Midii stepped into the doorway, glaring at Matt with her hands on her hips.  
"We heard a clanging noise, and then cheering. What's going on in here?"  
"Uhh...nothing, Mom!" Matt said, grinning innocently along with the rest of the room. Midii narrowed her eyes, and then scanned the room, seeing nothing out of place. She then settled her gaze on Matt.  
"Where's your slingshot?"  
"Um..at Daniel's. I left it there last week." He said, praying that she wouldn't make Mu Lan stand up considering he'd hid it under her.  
"..No more throwing things, Matthew, or I'll have your father talk to you when he gets back."  
"Uh..yeah! Sure, mom!"  
The door closed and the room was once again silent. Blinking, Duo turned to Matt.  
"Your middle name's Josiah?"  
"Shut up!"  
  
I'll never let you down  
Even if I could   
I'd give up everything  
If only for your good  
So hold me when I'm here  
  
Across town, a little girl stood in the doorway to her once-occupied room, trembling at the sight of the empty room and the bare walls, and somehow the rainbow didn't help it at all. She wanted to cry. She hated this! She didn't want to move! She wanted to stay here. Japan was her home! Europe would never be home to her! Never!  
With a new resolve, Aki turned from her room and walked into her father's room, which had not been 'packed up', and climbed under the covers, shivering a bit at the temperature.  
'You can make me go...but you can't make me like it.'  
  
Love me when I'm wrong  
You can hold me when I'm scared  
You won't always be there  
So love me when I'm gone  
  
  
End Chapter 6  
  
Here ya go, Syren...an update, just for you! 


	8. Uragirimono

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"  
Sally blinked and straightened, turning her eyes to the door that led to the 'childrens' room.   
"What was that?"  
"Something to do with my son, no doubt." Midii said with a sigh, starting to get up when the door slammed open, banging loudly against the wall. Everyone would have jumped if they had time, which was interrupted by a certain dark-haired girl with one sleeve rolled up her arm streaking across the room and diving under Hilde's chair. A very frazzled-looking Lucrezia ran in after her, followed by another dark-haired boy.  
"AKIKO YUY! COME OUT NOW!"  
"'Yui Akiko! Dete kinasai." The little boy said, leaning against the doorframe.   
"AKI WA ITTE KONAI DA!" Aki screamed, gripping the legs of Hilde's chair.  
"She says she's not coming out."  
"Okay, now it's on." Lucrezia growled, grabbing Aki's ankles. "You're coming out and getting that shot NOW!"  
"Shot?" Sally blinked, her mind whirling from all the events.  
"Aki's gotta get a shot for somethin'." The strange little boy mended, and Aki screamed.  
"HANASE!!!"  
"The chair's legs are cracking!" Hilde cried nervously, not able to get up because she knew that Lucrezia and the girl would go flying across the room. Lucrezia finally realized that and planted her feet on the ground. "Get up, Hilde!"  
Hilde quickly jumped out of the chair and Lucrezia wrapped one arm around Aki's waist, holding her as her other arm reached up and grabbed the chair that was coming down on her head from the momentum Aki had created. Aki sniffled a bit, slightly stunned, and Lucrezia let out a breath and set her and the chair down.  
"Crazy kid! Kotaro, you could have told me BEFORE that she was scared to death of needles!"  
"My bad." Kotaro mended innocently, looking upwards slightly as if he couldn't care less. Sally shook her head and stood up, walking into the children's room where she saw Zechs helping little Duo sit up.   
"What happened to him?"  
"He was kind of in Aki's path." Zechs explained, and that's when Sally saw the young doctor in the white coat, holding a needle and looking a little miffed. Sally approached him and held out her hand.  
"Gimme the needle, buddy."  
"What?!"  
"I'm a trained medical doctor, now hand it over!" She sai giving him a steely glare.  
"...You know I have to be present to observe the-"   
"Yeah, yeah." Sally cut him off and grabbed the needle, holding it behind her back as she walked into the main room, where everyone else was off to one side and Lucrezia had seated Aki on the couch, where she was sniffling and rubbing her eyes.  
"Aki chaaan." Sally said in a bit of a singsong voice, approaching her. Aki looked up at her, and Sally slowly brought the needle out from behind her back. Aki cringed slightly.   
"Aki doesn't like needles!" She whimpered.   
"I know, I know! I just wanna show it to you. If you don't want to get a shot, you don't -" She blinked and looked past Aki, pretending to be fixated with something out the window. "Oh my gosh! Aki, look at that!" She said, pointing. When Aki turned her head Sally grabbed her arm and pushed the needle in, pulling it back out again in record time. Aki blinked and then sniffled, turning to look at Sally, and then at her arm.  
"There, now! That wasn't so bad, was it?"  
Aki slowly shook her head, and Lucrezia breathed a sigh of relief. "Nice, Sally!"  
"After three of my own, I know a little about kids and needles."   
"Mama! It was AWESOME! Aki floored Duo with one punch!" Mulan cried excitedly from the doorway, bouncing up and down slightly. Hilde blinked.   
"What'd she say?"  
"She said that Aki knocked Duo out with one punch." Sally said, shooing Mulan out the door.   
"Go play! We'll come get you in a few minutes."  
The door closed, leaving Aki and Kotaro in the room with the strange adults. Well, just Kotaro..  
"Aki? Aki?! Damn it! This always happens! She disappeared THREE TIMES on the way here!!"  
"Are you looking...for this?" A slightly annoyed voice called from the other room, and the door to the bedroom opened to show Wufei holding Aki, looking a bit irked.   
"As a matter of fact, I was. What was she doing in there, anyways?"  
"Muran-chan wo sagashiteita ne, aki chan wa." She answered.  
"She was looking for Mulan." Wufei translated, setting her down. Aki was about to walk out the door when Lucrezia stopped her, and Aki tossed her an annoyed look as she picked Aki up and set her on the couch. Aki blinked as her vision swayed a bit, but paid it no attention.  
"Uhm...I'm very sorry, but...could someone tell me who these children are?" Midii asked.  
"What's it to you, lady?" Kotaro grumbled. Midii blinked.  
"Wow, you're rude."  
"Yeah, so?!"  
"So," Lucrezia said, walking over to him, "Apologize to that lady and then go sit on the couch. Ryosuke's coming in a minute."  
"Boo-hoo, I was rude. Cry me a river and build me a bride."  
"Build your own damn bridge!" Lucrezia huffed, picking up the seven-year-old boy and almost slamming him on the couch next to his younger sister. Everyone blinked. They hadn't seen her this antsy since the twins were toddlers.   
"MAMA! What does 'yan-yan' mean in English??"   
"Mulan, sweetie, stay with the other children for a while, okay? and close the door on your way out."  
"Okay..." Mulan left but didn't shut the door all the way, and while the adults were talking Aki saw a chance to bolt. Standing, she ran for the doorway and pushed it open, and instead of running out into the other room she ran into someone's legs. She felt herself falling backwards and was suddenly steadied by two hands, and she looked up curiously. A man with green eyes and an expressionless face was staring down at her.  
"And who are you?" He asked her in Japanese.  
"Who are YOU?" She asked back.  
"I asked you first."  
"I asked you second."  
"Ah, I see. I'm Trowa."  
"I'm Aki."  
"So why in such a hurry, Aki?"  
"Aki's looking for Mulan."  
"Don't let her out, Trowa." Lucrezia said, and Trowa nodded, picking up Aki.  
"You can see Mulan in a minute, but for now you have to sit and be patient." He then walked past Aki over to his wife, who was with Hilde near the window.  
They didn't close the door...again! Aki thought as she looked back, making sure no one was looking. When they weren't looking, she stood and ran to the door, almost reaching it when...  
Aki inwardly groaned as she ran into yet ANOTHER pair of legs, got thrown off balance yet again, and was steadied by a stranger who just so happened to be in the doorway....yet again.  
"Itetete..." Aki mumbled, looking up and seeing a blonde-haired man staring down at her. She blinked when he started to say something.  
"Aki can't understand you!"   
"Ooh! You speak Japanese!" He said, bending down to her level and smiling pleasently.   
"..." Aki turned to look back at Trowa, who was looking at her as well, and then turned back to the man.  
"Everyone speaks Japanese but Aki's aunt and uncle!" She said, sounding a bit frustrated. Suddenly she pointed to him. "You can be Aki's uncle instead! So there!"  
He laughed a little at that. "I'm afraid that's going to be a bit difficult...what's your name?"  
"Aki is Aki."  
"Hello Aki. I'm Quatre."  
Her brow furrowed a bit before she bit her lip and tried saying his name.  
"Ka-to-ru."  
He smiled and nodded. "Good enough!" He said, thinking back to the time when a 15-year-old Heero Yuy stood before him with the same expression on his face, pronouncing his name the same exact way.  
"Don't let her out, Quatre!"  
He nodded and then looked back to Aki. "I'm sorry, Aki chan, but you have to -"  
"Aki's LEAVING!" Aki yelled, pulling her foot back and kicking Quatre in the shin. She ran out the open door as Quatre winced and lost his balance. Suddenly from the other room they could hear a thump, a yell, and then Aki's screaming, and a split second later Ryosuke marched back in the room with Aki under his arm. Almost everyone blinked at the sight of the little boy.  
My god...He looks so much like Heero... Trowa thought.  
"URAGIMONO! URAGIMONO!" Aki yelled, kicking her feet and flailing her little arms. "URAGIMONO! HANASE! HANASE!!"   
"What's she saying?" Midii asked.  
Quatre chuckled a bit. "She's calling Ryosuke a traitor...and demanding that he let go of her."  
"Hanashitemo ii." Ryosuke said once he was by the couch, dropping her onto it and then sitting next to her.Aki sat up and crossed her arms, silently fuming. She wasn't going to get away with anything now that her big brothers were here.  
"OKay." Lucrezia said, shaking her head a bit to clear it. "Since it seems everyone is here, I'll start. These three children are Kotaro, Ryosuke and Aki Yuy. Aki's the youngest, Kotaro's the oldest. All three are Relena and Heero's children."  
The reactions varied. Wufei, Sally, Trowa and Quatre didn't really seem to surprised since they knew from the beginning, Midii kind of sat down real slowly, Hilde choked on her drink while Duo choked on his own spit, and Dorothy went up to Aki and took her face in both of her hands, turning it this way and that.  
"My God...this IS Relena's little girl!" She said, a bit disbelieving.  
"Trowa....darling..." Midii said in an unusually quiet voice.  
"Uh oh..."  
"DId you know about this?"  
"....."  
"Don't give me that! YOu knew about this, didn't you!?" She said, grabbing him by his shirt collar and starting to shake him. "YOU knew from the start, and got me worried sick that it was something serious!!"  
"Uhm...excuse me.." Ryosuke said quietly.  
"WOAH! MATT! YOUR MOM'S BEATIN' UP YOUR DAD!"  
"Junior, OUT!" Hilde screamed at her oldest son before erupting into another coughing fit. Aki blinked as the door slamming shut jarred her hearing, and she winced.   
Ugh...  
Blinking to clear her blurred vision, she looked up at the adults, who gratefully had stopped yelling. Feeling her stomach roll sickeningly, Aki tugged on Ryosuke's shirt.  
"Oniisan..." She mumbled quietly, her eyes glazed over. He turned to look at her just as her grip on his shirt loosened and her eyes slid half closed.  
"Aki..doesn't feel so good...."   
Those were the last words she spoke before she fell to the ground, blood soaking the bandages on her wrist.  
"Aki!? Aki! AKI!!" 


End file.
